Persona 3 and 4: A Meeting of Worlds
by TigStripe
Summary: The Amagi Inn is housing a large group of strange characters now, and it would appear that they've got a lot in common with the Inaba group. P3FES and P4. True genre pending.
1. Introductions

Persona 3/4 – A Meeting of Worlds

By TigStripe

***

Author's Note: This fic was a spur-of-the-moment idea. I liked it. I'm placing this fic under the category of "Persona 4" even though it has P3 people in it as well. For that matter, there are some decent spoilers for P3, if you haven't played it. Especially this chapter. I've tried to keep the main spoilers out of the P4 recap that's present in this chapter. If you haven't finished P4, you _shouldn't_ be spoiled much, but if you're paranoid, I wouldn't read anything after the groups assemble in the Inn.

Thanks for reading!

***

Chapter 1: Introductions

"What a backwards little place this is." Mitsuru Kirijo looked around the station as she boarded the platform from the train. "Yasoinaba Station. What a small station." Curious, she surveyed her surroundings once more. It wasn't until her third look around that she noticed a beautiful young woman with long black hair standing in front of her with her arms crossed. "Are you Amagi-san?" Mitsuru asked.

The girl nodded with a confident smile. "I am Yukiko Amagi. Please, just call me Yukiko. You must be Kirijo-san. Please, follow me. We have a taxi for you to take you back to the Inn already." Yukiko motioned with her arm and Mitsuru nodded with a warm smile.

"Oh, my traveling partner," Mitsuru said with sudden realization that she was leaving someone behind.

"Traveling partner?" Yukiko asked with a curious expression.

"There," Mitsuru said, pointing at a dog carrier on a pile of luggage being pulled along by a trolley.

"You…you brought a dog?" Yukiko inquired.

Mitsuru nodded. "I hope that's all right. Koromaru can't be left at the mansion on his own, and with everyone out of town, we thought it would be best if I took him with me."

Yukiko shook her head. "No, no, that's fine. He'll need to stay in your room until designated hours at the Inn, though. We usually don't allow pets, but since you're such an important guest, we can make an exception."

"Oh, he's not a pet, I assure you," Mitsuru replied offhandedly. She walked over to the luggage and immediately opened the dog carrier. "I'm sorry you had to travel in that thing, Koromaru. Forgive me?" she added with a smile.

Out bounded a small white dog with a red armband on his left front leg. He wore a white sleeveless dog tunic with two small wings sewn into the back. He grinned up at Mitsuo and barked, his tail wagging. Yukiko was astonished.

"Well then, shall we go?" Mitsuru asked Yukiko. Koromaru stood close to Mitsuru, sniffing every which way from where he stood.

Yukiko's discomfort at being around Koromaru was evident, but she did her best not to let it show. "Y-Yes, this way." She turned and led the duo to the taxi awaiting them outside the station.

Half an hour later, Mitsuru opened the door to her room in the Amagi Inn, letting Koromaru in first. He immediately investigated the premises as Mitsuru laid her bag down near the futon. She turned and looked at the doorway, in which Yukiko stood watching.

"Is there anything else, Yukiko-san?" Mitsuru asked.

"Not officially," Yukiko admitted. "I was wondering if you traveled with Koromaru-san often?"

Mitsuru nodded. "He is a very important friend."

"I noticed you said he was not a pet, yet he is clearly your dog," Yukiko observed.

Mitsuru shook her head. "He is not my dog. I am his guardian, but he is not mine. His owner passed away just a little over three years ago. We have had the luck to have co-guardianship of Koromaru since."

Now Yukiko was truly confused. "We?"

Mitsuru laughed. "You'll see soon enough. We were the first to arrive, yes? We're expecting a total party of eight, including Koromaru."

Yukiko nodded. "The guest list only included seven names. Whoever set up the reservations didn't mention Koromaru-san."

Mitsuru's brow furrowed. "That was rude of them. Who was it that set up the reservation? I shall have a word with them when they arrive."

"I believe it was a man by the name of Junpei Iori."

"Of course. He and Koromaru were always close, but he probably did not think to include Koromaru in the reservation list. That's just like him," Mitsuru said with a sigh.

Yukiko bowed her head and looked back up at Mitsuru. "Well then, Kirijo-san, I shall be going. If you need anything, the phone in this room is directly tied to the front desk."

"Thank you, Yukiko-san. I shall remain here for now."

Yukiko bowed and turned down the hall, closing Mitsuru's door behind her. As she headed down the hall towards the front office, Yukiko couldn't help but think, _What a strange woman, traveling with a dog, yet refusing to acknowledge it as a pet. A party of eight, she said? I hope our Inn doesn't fill with animals…_

The next morning, Yukiko received a call from a person named Yukari Takeba, announcing that she was on the train headed for Inaba station. Takeba was on the guest list to be included with Kirijo and Koromaru, so Yukiko told her that she would be at the station to greet her. As an afterthought, Yukiko hesitantly asked, "Takeba-san, do you have any animals with you?"

The answer came from a confused Yukari. "No, why?"

Yukiko sighed in relief. "No reason. I shall meet you at the station when you arrive."

Half an hour later, Yukiko stood atop the platform awaiting the next train to arrive. Her cell phone rang in her purse. Answering it quickly, she heard a familiar voice.

"Rise-chan?"

"Hey, Senpai! You wouldn't _believe_ the characters on this train! There's this Iori guy that-"

"Wait, Iori? Junpei Iori?" Yukiko demanded.

"Yeah, why?"

Yukiko's heart skipped a beat. "Wait, you're on a train?"

"Sure am! Heading to Yasoinaba station right now! But anyway, Iori and Takeba and Sanada are all heading to your Inn. And you won't believe the stories they'll have to tell you. And by _you won't believe_, I mean _only we would believe_."

Yukiko's heart skipped another beat. "Rise-chan, what do you mean by that?"

"You'll have to wait and see, Senpai. Do me a favor and call Yosuke-senpai and Chie-senpai. I'll call Naoto-kun and Kanji. We need everyone to meet these guys. And don't forget Teddie."

Yukiko hung up, more confused now than ever. Still in a state of confusion, she followed Rise's idea, calling Yosuke and Chie, asking them to get Teddie and come to the Inn. Both of the others were confused, but agreed to be there by nightfall.

The train finally arrived. The first person off the train was a bouncy young woman with curly brown hair and a huge smile on her face. She rushed over to Yukiko and grabbed her neck with her arms. She and Yukiko laughed together as they hugged for a moment before breaking apart.

"Rise-chan, I'm so glad to see you!" Yukiko said with a huge smile.

"Likewise, Senpai! Oh, hey, wait until you meet these guys!" Rise turned and yelled back towards the train. "Hey, guys, c'mon! Over here!"

Three young adults left the train in a straight line. The first was a young man with silver hair and a devilishly handsome face. The second was a young woman with short brown hair and bright, intelligent eyes. The third was easily depicted as a jokester, a young man with a baseball cap and goatee, with a mischievous grin on his face. The three of them saw Rise and walked over to the two of them, sticking close together.

"You must be Amagi-san," the silver-haired man said with a smile that could make Teddie jealous. He extended his hand in greeting, which Yukiko took with a blush.

"This is Akihiko Sanada, Yukari Takeba, and Junpei Iori," Rise said, her hand motioning to each person in turn. "Everyone, this is Yukiko-senpai, just like I told you."

"Pleasure to meet you," Yukari said with a smile.

"Yo," Junpei said with a laugh. "So you're the one with the haunted inn, right?"

Yukiko blinked. "Excuse me?"

Rise laughed nervously. "I might have mentioned the murders to them, and how your inn was under suspicion of being haunted by Miss Yamano."

"Rise!" Yukiko hissed. "You didn't!"

Rise's eyes opened in innocence. "Don't worry, Senpai. I only did it in confidence. Trust me on this. You'll understand tonight."

"So is anyone else from our guest list here, Amagi-san?" Akihiko asked.

"Kirijo-san and Koromaru-san are here," Yukiko replied. "Which reminds me. Iori-san, Kirijo-san said that she would have to have a word with you about not including Koromaru-san on the guest list."

Akihiko laughed and looked over at Junpei, whose face had turned a strange pale color. "Looks like you're going to get executed, Junpei."

Yukari shook her head. "Eh, he'll be all right." Junpei didn't look so convinced.

Akihiko looked back at Yukiko. "There should be one more train, I believe. Yamagishi should be bringing Aigis and Ken."

"Then the guest list will be complete," Yukiko admitted. She looked at Rise. "Rise, aren't you staying at the Inn as well?"

Rise nodded with a smile. "Only for tonight, though. I'm going to go stay with Grandma after that."

Yukiko looked back at Akihiko. "The last train should be here in about an hour. I'll stay here and wait for it. Rise-chan can show you to the Inn."

Rise nodded. "Sure thing, Senpai. Let's go, guys! I can't wait to get everyone together!"

Yukiko looked worried as Rise skipped away with Junpei, with Yukari slowly following behind them. She stopped Akihiko for a moment. "Sanada-san…"

"Please, call me Akihiko."

"Akihiko-san, what did Rise tell you?"

Akihiko smiled. "She told us enough to verify the fact that Junpei thought that this would be a great place for us to stay. No worries."

This answer did not sate Yukiko's confusion. In fact, it only raised more questions. She let Akihiko join the others as she sat down to wade in her own doubts and concerns. What had Rise told them? No one would believe the things that Rise _could_ have told them. Dojima-san still didn't believe them, even though they were the ones that had brought in the real killer.

Yukiko pondered this and that for the next forty-five minutes, when she heard the announcement of an incoming train. She stood up as the train arrived, the final train to fill the guest list for the Amagi Inn. A young woman with disheveled hair approached her from the train, followed by a taller woman with blonde hair and a large hairband and a small boy, middle school aged.

"Amagi-san?" the first woman inquired. She was very soft-spoken. Yukiko nodded. "My name is Fuuka Yamagishi. This is Ken Amada, and our friend Aigis."

"Pleased to meet you. I am Yukiko Amagi. Please, call me Yukiko. A taxi should be here momentarily to take us to the Inn." Yukiko looked at Aigis. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your last name."

"I don't have one," Aigis replied with a kind smile. "My name is simply Aigis."

Yukiko tilted her head in confusion. Would the strange things from this group never cease?

"Well then, shall we go await the taxi?" Yukiko asked, motioning to the exit. Fuuka nodded and led the three of them after their stewardess.

An hour later, the Amagi Inn was bustling with the likes of people whom Yukiko had never imagined before. Hugs and hellos were thrown every which-way, even moreso as Yukiko's comrades arrived. Soon, the lobby of the Inn was completely filled with bodies.

Yukiko observed the seating arrangement, and was shocked to see Kanji sitting directly next to Junpei. "You two sure warmed up to each other quickly," Yukiko observed.

Kanji laughed nervously and Junpei grinned. "Well, truth be told, we didn't just meet," Junpei admitted. "We've been pen pals for about a year now. This is the first time we've ever met in person, but we've known about each other for a while now."

"That's amazing, Kanji-kun! I'm impressed," Rise said with a smile. "I didn't think you'd be the type to keep a pen pal."

"Kanji's just full of surprises," Yosuke admitted. He and Teddie were sitting next to Chie, who was next to Ken. Koromaru was sitting at Ken's feet. They were opposite Kanji, Junpei, Mitsuru, and Akihiko. Fuuka and Rise were sitting in a small loveseat at the end of the lobby, and Yukiko and Yukari were standing at the other end, surveying the group. Naoto was standing next to Aigis in the corner, watching the scene quietly. It was quite the crowd.

"Okay, so what's the big deal to be dragged out here, anyway?" Chie asked Rise. "I mean, it's cool to meet so many people, and they're really awesome people to boot, but why them, Rise-chan?"

Rise leaned forward and grinned. "Well…" She stopped, her face suddenly serious. She looked around and saw that no other inn guests or workers were around. "Okay. So get this, guys: everyone in this room can summon a Persona."

There was a stunned silence. Only a select few weren't slack-jawed. This select few consisted of Rise, Akihiko, Yukari, Junpei, Kanji, and Koromaru. Koromaru was probably not slack-jawed only because he was already panting.

Mitsuru made a motion with her hand. "How do you know about Personas?"

Rise's face contorted into irritation. "Didn't I just say that everyone here could summon one?"

Mitsuru shook her head. "Well, that's partially accurate. We can no longer summon ours."

Yukari nodded. "Yeah, when the Shadows disappeared from this world two years ago, we lost the ability to summon our Personas."

Yosuke perked up. "Wait, did you say 'this world'? You guys could summon your Personas in this world?"

Fuuka nodded. "We used our Personas in an altered dimension parallel to this one. Well, kind of. It's…hard to explain."

"Our school was, for one reason or another, 'cursed' several years ago, and transformed into a gigantic tower whose sole purpose was to usher in the bringer of death, Nyx," Mitsuru explained. "Our Personas could be summoned in our world because we never left our world."

"A giant tower," Yosuke whispered. "That would have been something to see."

"Shadows in this world?" Teddie demanded. "That's not possible. Shadows can't exist in this world."

"They didn't exist long in this world," Mitsuru replied. "They would only leave the tower every full moon."

Teddie shook his head. "I'm telling you, that isn't possible."

Mitsuru stood up. "Explain that to the year-long struggle we went through!" Her voice and face were angry, but none of her colleagues looked concerned.

"Teddie here is a bit of an expert on Shadows," Yosuke explained.

"Their situation was different," Naoto interjected. "The Shadows manifested in their world, whereas we enter the Shadows' world." She looked at Mitsuru. "How long was the tower around?"

"The school would only transform into the tower for one hour every night," Mitsuru acknowledged.

"I get it," Akihiko said. "If Shadows really can't stay in our world for long, that explains why Tartarus – er, the tower – would go away after the Dark Hour ended."

"Guys, this is all really interesting, but let's hear them out, huh?" Rise suggested. "Speculations can wait. I wanted you guys to hear their full story. You'll really be shocked."

Mitsuru returned to her seat and crossed her legs. "For one hour every night, the world would shut down. We called this hour the Dark Hour. Only those with the potential to host a Persona could function during this hour, and electronic equipment would cease functioning. I was the first person in the area to successfully control a Persona in order to fight a Shadow."

Akihiko leaned forward. "Mitsuru and I were the first two people to decide to explore Tartarus. Along with a friend named Shinjiro, we started a group known as SEES – the Specialized Extracurricular Execution Squad. We were devoted to discovering why Tartarus had appeared, and seeing if we could put a stop to the Dark Hour."

Yukari spoke up next. "Eventually, every full moon brought out a monstrously powerful Shadow that would leave Tartarus and wreak havoc on the outside world. We took it upon ourselves to destroy these Shadows before people were hurt. Unfortunately, some people had already fallen ill to the Shadows, and went comatose. Many rumors started out of these comas, but only we knew the truth. Every time we defeated a large Shadow, the number of comas would dwindle, but they would increase again as the next full moon approached."

Fuuka's arms started moving as she spoke. "Unfortunately, we didn't realize that by destroying the large Shadows, we were actually rejoining them into one entity. Eventually, we defeated all the large shadows we were going to, but a problem presented itself: because of our actions, mankind was going to die."

Aigis stepped forward. "I was originally created to battle Shadows, specifically one large Shadow represented by Death. I was defeated and reconstructed, years ago. After we defeated the last of the large shadows, Death reappeared before us in a false image. We discovered this fallacy and faced him on it, but he disappeared before we could defeat him. He claimed that he would return on New Year's Eve with a decision for us: either we could have our memories erased and die with the rest of the world peacefully, or continue to retain our memories and suffer the fear of knowing that the end was coming in thirty days. Either way, the world would end on January 31."

Junpei's voice was rather sudden, as he didn't make any movements to let anyone know he was speaking. "Problem was, we didn't like those choices. So we fought our way to the top of Tartarus, and on January 31, we fought the representation of Nyx, the entity formed of mankind's desire to end all suffering through death. Or something like that. In any case, we kicked his ass, but he had one last trick up his sleeve. He summoned, like…the _moon_ or something, and the world was really almost over. But…"

The room went silent.

"But what?" Chie demanded, leaning on the edge of her seat.

Everyone who had spoken turned to look at Aigis, who smile sadly. "But our squad leader sacrificed his life to seal away Nyx and block out the desires of mankind. He single-handedly stopped Nyx and saved the world. All he needed was our thoughts of him and our unstoppable wills."

The Inaba group was quiet now. Yukiko couldn't believe her ears. Everything they'd said seemed to line up somehow to their own incident. No wonder Rise had wanted the two groups to meet.

"But that wasn't the end of it," Ken voiced, breaking the silence. "We were about to go our separate ways, when the day started repeating itself. Because of our involvement in Nyx's defeat, we'd been tied to the Desert of Time. For some reason, Aigis was given the same special powers as our first squad leader, and we had to dive into the desert and defeat the actual embodiment of mankind's desire to die. You see, when our leader sacrificed himself, he established a physical barrier that our desires were constantly beating against. It was a solid barrier, but it was already beginning to crack, just two months later. We saw a lot about each other in that desert, and when everything was said and done, it was us versus the will of mankind to die."

"I assume, since we're still around, that you guys won," Chie said. Ken nodded.

"So what's your story?" Akihiko asked. "Rise mentioned that you guys had an interesting one, but she didn't tell us any of it."

Naoto stepped forward. "I can retell the story."

Yukiko nodded. "That's probably best. We can fill in the parts you missed."

Naoto delved into the story of the Inaba murders, the world inside the television, and the eventual confrontation with mankind's desires to hide the unwanted truth in a dense fog. The embarrassing stories were left out, but the failures in capturing the correct criminals were included. Teddie's origin was also recollected, which got several gasps from the other group. Finally, Naoto told the story of Izanami, and how their own group leader had squared off against the original goddess of Japan one-on-one, with only the thoughts of those around him to support him. When she spoke of this, everyone in the room became very somber. The connection between the two people was undeniable. Both had been exceptions to the Persona rule, and both had faced off against the will of man and won.

"So what happened to your leader?" Yukari asked.

"He moved back to his home town," Chie said. "He's still alive."

Yukari looked at the ground. Her face seemed to be…bitter.

"It's been three years, and yet we still wish he'd come back to us," Aigis explained. "When I inherited his power of multiple Personas, we worried that I would die as well. Unfortunately, I did not. To this day, if I could give my life to restore his, I would."

Yosuke scratched the back of his head nervously. "Well, I hate to say it, but what's done is done. We can't live in the past, right?"

"You're exactly right," Mitsuru admitted. "It's just very difficult to let go the death of two of your best friends."

"Two?" Chie asked.

"Remember Shinjiro, who helped us start SEES?" Akihiko asked. "Yeah…he…"

The room became silent again.

"Well!" Rise stood up quickly with a grin on her face. "That's enough of this mopey stuff! Collectively, we've saved the world how many times? We should go do something happy for a change!"

"What about the TV world?" Chie asked. "Their reason for using Personas is gone, but ours still exists. Maybe we could show them?"

Teddie nodded. "And now, since it's so beautiful there, it'll be a real treat!"

"Oh hey, why don't we invite Nana-chan and Dojima-san, too?" Chia asked. "I mean, I'm sure Nana-chan would love to see everyone again, and I bet Dojima-san would love to see proof with his own eyes that the place exists."

"We can try, at least," Yosuke said with a grin.

"Okay then. It's a date!" Teddie cried with a laugh.

Yukiko nodded. Quite the gathering of people. Each one had a story, and each one had a reason that they had fought. In the morning, they would enter the TV world again, not as people searching for answers, but as people who know the answers, and are merely seeking a good time.

"Good night, everyone," Yukiko said with a bow and a smile.


	2. World

Persona 3/4 – A Meeting of Worlds

***

Chapter 2: World

"So how exactly does this work?" Yukari asked Rise as a party of seventeen moved through Junes' electronics department.

"It's a _hugely_ involved process. Each person has to go through it," Rise said with an air of dignity about her. "Each person stands directly in front of the television, and then we step through."

Yukari raised an eyebrow. "You're not very funny, you know."

Rise smiled. "Nope! That's why we have Teddie around. His jokes are amazing. You should ask him to tell you one later."

"So anyone mind telling me why I was dragged along on this field trip?" one of the two newcomers to the group demanded. He was a rugged detective in the Inaba police department.

"Dojima-san, please be patient," Naoto replied without looking at the detective. "All will become clear momentarily."

Yosuke and Teddie were the first to reach the large screen television sitting near the floor in the electronics department. This television was almost a relic to the Inaba investigation group; it was their gateway to saving those who had been thrown into the world within over the past year.

"Up until two months ago, we would follow our leader into this specific TV," Chie told Junpei as they approached Yosuke and Teddie. "He moved back home just six weeks ago. We all miss him, though."

"Hey, Teddie, did you bring them?" Yosuke asked. Teddie nodded with a grin and revealed a plastic bag from behind his back.

The group was a chaotic mess of conversation as it gathered around the single television screen. Dojima seemed to be the only one who was utterly confused as to why they were standing in the Junes electronics department.

"Okay, then. Everyone should pay attention over here," Yosuke announced. The group quieted down and their eyes all fell on Yosuke, who was standing directly in front of the screen. Teddie stood directly to his left, with a goofy grin on his face. "Teddie, if you would please."

Teddie moved to each person individually, reaching into the plastic bag and pulling out an object, which he then handed to everyone. While Teddie was busy, Yosuke began speaking.

"You'll find Teddie handing you a set of eyeglasses. Well, uh, we don't really think they'll be necessary, but we wanted to cover all our bases. Kind of a 'just in case' situation."

Teddie reached the final person, Junpei, and reached into his bag one last time. Suddenly, his face contorted into a worried expression and he frantically dug inside the bag. "Uh, Yosuke, I'm out of glasses."

Junpei looked into the bag as well. "Eh, just as well. I can see fine."

"It's not your eyesight we're worried about," Yosuke replied, "it's your life."

Dojima's brow furrowed. "Now wait, Hanamura, you're not doing anything dangerous, are you? I won't let Nanako be involved in anything-"

"Dojima-san, you worry too much," Chie interrupted with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Even if we _would_ let Nanako do anything dangerous, it's not like you don't have the entire team that took down the killer standing right in front of you. If anything happens, we can handle it. Trust me."

Dojima stood silent, defeated by a high school girl. "Fine. But we're leaving at the first sign of any funny business."

"Dad, we'll be fine," Nanako said, tugging at Dojima's sleeve. She only came up to his navel, an elementary school girl with the wit of a fully capable adult.

"Don't you have any glasses tucked away, Ted?" Yosuke asked. Teddie shook his head, then started contemplating.

"I think I have one inside my world. Just one pair. It won't hurt Junpei to go in without glasses."

Yosuke nodded. "That's cool, then. Alright, everyone, gather 'round. Time to show you how we do things around here." Attention was returned to Yosuke and the large screen behind him. The third-year student turned around and reached out a hand to hover over the smooth screen of the television. "Those of us who still use a Persona can still access this world, but I don't know about any of you guys, so go ahead and pair up as best you can. Now, check it out." Yosuke made a pointed finger and tapped the screen. A series of ripples traveled out from the tip of his finger, as if he'd dropped a pebble into a lake's surface. When he pulled his finger away, the ripples stopped.

There were smiles and gasps of excitement and awe spread throughout the group. Dojima's mouth hung open ever so slightly. Nanako, already donned in her kid's style glasses, clapped and laughed.

"Our TV sure doesn't do that," Junpei remarked with a laugh.

"May I test something?" Mitsuru asked Yosuke. "You say that it's your Personas that allow you to traverse the two worlds. Perhaps we can also do so, because we have the potential to carry them."

"A logical conclusion," Naoto observed. "Yosuke-senpai, let her touch the television."

Yosuke nodded and stepped away from the screen as Mitsuru sidled her way up next to it. She reached out and gingerly touched the television screen. From the point of contact, a ripple traversed the screen's surface, exactly as it had done under Yosuke's touch. There was a second wave of awe and excitement throughout the crowd.

"Sweet!" Junpei cried. "So we can do it too, because we used to have Personas?"

"It appears that way, anyway," Mitsuru replied with a nod. "I'm satisfied. Port Islanders, please stay close to your Inaba chaperones. We don't know what's going to happen."

Dojima was still completely awestruck as Nanako moved forward, pulling on his sleeve as she went. "Let's go! Let's go!"

Koromaru leapt up into Ken's arms as he stood next to Rise, who was flanked by Yukari as well. Yosuke motioned to them first, and the four of them moved up to stand abreast in front of the television. Rise grinned and leapt forward with an excited cry, followed quickly by Yukari, who shouted in surprise, and Ken with Koromaru, both of whom were silent. As their bodies contacted the screen, it disappeared as if it were bounding through a vertical wall of water. Ripples crashed out from the screen, never leaving the two-dimensional plane, but traversing the screen violently as such a disturbance interrupted its peace.

In an instance, Rise, Yukari, Ken, and Koromaru were gone.

"Me next, me next!" Nanako cried with squeals of laughter. Dojima didn't look as enthused.

"Nana-chan and Dojima-san can go with me," Teddie suggested. Nanako cheered as Dojima clumsily allowed himself to be pulled by his daughter to face the screen alongside Teddie. "One," Teddie started, "two, three!" Teddie and Nanako leapt forward, pulling Dojima along with them. Both of them let out shouts of excitement as they plummeted through the screen's surface, while Dojima waited to shout until after he was completely through.

"Next up," Yosuke called.

Kanji and Junpei sidled up next to each other, each with cocky grins on their faces. The simply leapt forward, both without a word, and entered the screen simultaneously, leaving the group smaller than before.

"I'll go next," Yukiko proclaimed. Mitsuru decided to go with her, standing confidently next to her with her arms crossed. The two of them looked almost regal in their reflections in the screen, before both let out girlish yells of excitement – not screams, of course, but mere exclamations of adrenaline – as they leapt into the screen as well.

Chie and Fuuka were next, standing quietly in front of the screen. Chie grinned widely and let out a whoop of excitement. She grabbed Fuuka's hand and leapt forward, Chie yelling in excitement and Fuuka screaming in protest. Soon, they were both gone.

Naoto nodded to Yosuke and moved to face the screen next. Aigis stepped up next to her. The two of them, silent as the grave, calmly stepped forward, allowing the rippling screen to envelope them much more delicately than the previous groups. In just so many seconds, they, too, were gone, leaving only Yosuke and Akihiko.

"This is quite the way to travel," Akihiko remarked as he and Yosuke moved up next to each other.

"It's great. Only thing is, each television is connected to a different location. Also, there's no way out, once you're in. Only Teddie can make an exit," Yosuke said. He saw Akihiko's worried expression and laughed. "Remember, Teddie's on our side. We've gone into this world so many times it'd be impossible to count! Now let's go join the others."

Akihiko nodded and faced the screen as confidently as he knew how. With a push of fear and anticipation, the boxer leapt forward alongside his high school chaperone, and both slipped through the dark screen into a world of white.

Moments later, Yosuke held out his hand, which Akihiko graciously took. Pulling Akihiko to his feet, Yosuke had to laugh a little. "Sorry 'bout that first step, man. It's a bit of a doozy."

"No kidding," Akihiko said with a chuckle himself. "I'm afraid my pride will remember that one for a while."

Yosuke looked back to the group, then around at his surroundings. The world inside the television was nothing less than picturesque. Beautiful mountain ranges cascaded across the horizon; beautiful lakes reflected the perfect blue sky; gigantic fields of gorgeous wildflowers bloomed unnaturally close together, forming a sheer carpet of various colors. This world no longer even remotely resembled the dreary, fog-filled world that Yosuke knew so well. He and his friends had finally rid both worlds of the terrible fog that was threatening to meld all realities together. Now, this world truly reflected that which it was supposed to: the human heart. The heart was a strong entity, shared by all, yet unique to each individual. This world represented that unity, and that individuality, in its absolute splendor.

"There's no fog here, so I don't think we'll need those glasses," Teddie claimed from behind Yosuke. Yosuke turned around and laughed a little, surprised to see Teddie suddenly suited with his infamous blue bear costume. Adorned in red and white pajamas, the bear was a sigh to behold; but it was still Teddie – or, perhaps, it was how Teddie normally was. It was beginning to become difficult for Yosuke to remember.

"Nice outfit." Junpei cracked a grin. "Kanji, you were right. He looks so fluffy! Hey, Teddie, can I pet you?"

Teddie's glass eyes narrowed dangerously, proving that his "costume" was more than just a costume. "No."

"Aw," Yukari whined. "What about me?" she asked, leaning down and putting an innocent hand to her hair.

A faint red flooded the cheeks of Teddie's bear face. "I-I'd be bear-y pleased if you did."

Yukari's eyes flashed and she stood up quickly, the innocence gone from her face and voice. "What? 'Bear'-y? Oh man, that was terrible."

Yukiko snickered a little loudly, but managed to keep her composure.

"Anyway, now that we're here, what do we want to do?" Chie asked, looking around.

"You say that like it's not the most beautiful landscape ever," Ken replied, his eyes wide and brimming with excitement. He was looking every which way, trying to take in as much of the scene around him as possible.

"Oh, it's beautiful, but it's not something we haven't seen before," Yukiko told Ken. "Ever been to the mountains in your dreams? Or gone deep lake diving? Or maybe you went frolicking through a field of flowers with a crush? Well, where do you think those images came from, Ken-kun?"

Junpei looked around in astonishment, then looked back at Yukiko. "Wait, are you shittin' me? This place is where our dreams come from?"

"That's not entirely true," Naoto replied with a shake of her head. "More accurately, this place is formed out of our dreams. This world reflects the human heart in the majority."

"It's so pretty," Nanako said in awe. "It wasn't like this at all when I was here before."

A slight sting in Yosuke's heart made him laugh. "Well, Nanako-chan, you saw some of the prettiest stuff there was in here before. This is just what your big bro helped make this place."

There was a tiny gasp from the girl. "Big bro made this place so pretty?"

Chie nodded. "Yup. And all of us helped. Even you."

"Even me?" Nanako was in sheer ecstasy now, her eyes alight with wonder.

Dojima shook his head and rubbed his eyes before looking around again. "It…It really does exist," he whispered.

Junpei laughed and threw his hands into his pockets, intending to take in a huge breath of fresh air. Before he did, however, he grunted in confusion and withdrew his hand from his pocket. Kanji raised an eyebrow. "What's up, Junpei?"

"I don't remember putting anything in my pocket," Junpei replied, inspecting the object he'd withdrawn from his pants. It was a flat, rectangular card with the emblem of a mask on one side. The other side, however, seemed to show…

"Wha?" Junpei cried, holding his hand out at arm's length, then bringing it in close to his eyes again.

"What is it, Junpei-kun?" Fuuka asked.

"I-It's Trismegistus," Junpei cried. He flipped the card over in his hand and held it up to show Fuuka, who gasped.

"It is! It's your Persona! What's it doing on that card?" Fuuka asked.

Akihiko looked as if he felt something. Reaching into his own pocket, he withdrew a similar card. "Caesar?"

Mitsuru, Yukari, and Ken all looked at Akihiko, then reached into their own clothes. Each one withdrew a card containing what appeared to be their Personas. Ken even pulled out a second card and gasped. He quickly showed it to Koromaru, who barked and wagged his tail.

"What? Even Cerberus?" Yukari inquired. Ken nodded and showed it to her.

Dojima was lost now. "Wait, wait, wait, what's going on? What's all this card business about?"

"Well, Dojima-san, do you remember our story about entering the TV and summoning Personas to fight Shadows and track down the killer?" Yosuke asked.

Dojima nodded slowly.

"Well, these guys did something similar a few years back, but they'd lost their ability to summon their Personas. Well, it seems that this place has let them do it again, in the form of those cards. See?" Yosuke reached into his pocket and pulled out a card containing the image of Susano-O, his Persona. "We're used to having these things appear with us when we enter here, but they're not."

Mitsuru looked up from her card to peer at Yosuke. "Appear? Then, they don't travel to the real world when you leave?" she asked.

Naoto shook her head. "No, I'm afraid they do not. We are unable to summon our Personas in the real world."

Rise sighed. "Which is a bummer, 'cuz that'd be totally useful sometimes. It'd be awesome if I could sense people's locations in the real world."

Fuuka gasped and looked at Rise. "What? You sense people?"

Rise nodded. "Yep! I'm like Teddie, but more accurate. His Persona is much more battle-oriented than mine, though, so he helped fight off Shadows while I gave analytical support from a distance."

Akihiko laughed. "Wow, Mitsuru, this is sounding really familiar."

Mitsuru nodded. "I agree. There are entirely too many correlations between our groups to be mere coincidence. In my experience, I would expect that our groups were formed in the ways that they were for a reason."

"It sure is nice to think that way, that's for sure," Chie agreed. "Without that thought, we might not have been able to save Naoto, Kubo, or Nanako, since Rise was the one who pin-pointed their locations."

"So, we have cards with our Personas on them," Yukari observed, "but does that mean that we can summon them?"

Yosuke nodded. "Hey, Yukiko, you have your fan on you, right?"

Yukiko nodded and drew a large-framed fan from her waistband. "Are you asking for a demonstration?"

Yosuke nodded. Yukiko sighed and opened her fan. She threw her card into the air in front of her face and spun around. "_Amaterasu_!" As she spun, Yukiko extended the arm holding her fan, and turned the fan horizontal. The razor edge of her fan sliced cleanly through her card, which immediately fell into two pieces, then disappeared in a puff of light and smoke. The air above Yukiko shimmered as a physical body appeared over the group's heads. A glowing humanoid body with a large, metal protrusion similar to a cape or large wing appeared. It nodded its indescribable head at the group, then disappeared in a flash of light as quickly as it had appeared. The card reappeared in Yukiko's hand, completely mended.

"That was incredible," Dojima whispered. "I've never seen anything like it."

"Did you say Amaterasu when you summoned it?" Mitsuru asked.

Yukiko nodded. "Yes. Our Personas are named after gods and entities of various myths, legends, fables, and stories. We don't know why; they presented themselves to us as such."

Mitsuru sighed and shook her head, placing one hand on her temple as if she had suddenly become very tired. "Another quality we seem to share. Will the correlations never cease?"

"Well, none of us have our weapons with us to see if it works with us," Yukari said. "Even Koromaru used a kunai in his mouth."

"That's not true," Ken replied quickly. "Sanada-sempai never used a weapon; just his fists."

"That's right!" Yukari laughed. "Akihiko-senpai, go ahead and try it."

Akihiko looked at his card in confusion. "Do you think it will work?" he asked.

"Not if you question if it will or not," Teddie replied simply. "It's your Persona, after all; it's part of you. If you don't think it will appear, then it unmistakably will fail. That's how it works, after all."

Akihiko nodded and held his card out. "Alright, then. Caesar, show yourself, for old time's sake!"

Akihiko threw the strange card out to his front, about eye-level, and delivered a quick jab that shattered it like glass. He grunted as his face contorted in discomfort, an eerie blue-black smoke lifting from the ground around him. A large, silver knight appeared overhead, a grand sword in one hand and a globe in the other. It lifted its sword high into the air before disappearing in a flash of light. Akihiko fell to one knee, panting.

"Akihiko!" Mitsuru cried, rushing over to help him. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Akihiko replied between gasps. "It's…"

"That was definitely Caesar," Yukari observed. "Akihiko summoned his Persona!"

"It feels just like the first time I used my Evoker," Akihiko finished. "I'm tired just from that tiny summoning."

"Well that's understandable, it's been years since we've summoned our Personas," Fuuka noted. "I think it'd be only natural that we'd feel a bit of fatigue."

Yukari held her card out, similarly to Akihiko, and punched it with her bare hand. The card fell lifeless to the floor. Confused, Yukari picked it up and stared at it for a moment.

This time, it was Teddie to the rescue. "I think Akihiko succeeded because he used his hands to touch Shadows. You guys claim that he used his fists as weapons, right? Well, that's the expertise he used in fighting against the Shadows, so I figure it makes sense that only a weapon used against Shadows could break the card."

"But I don't own any of the weapons we used anymore," Yukari replied in disdain. "And even if I did, they'd all still be back home."

"No, no, no, that's not what I meant," Teddie replied feverishly. "Akihiko used his martial arts to fight Shadows. Just like Yosuke used two-weapon fighting like daggers. Chie used her martial arts, too, but with her legs. Yukiko used a fan! Those are _skills_ used to break the cards, not _weapons_."

"I get it," Junpei said in realization. "So you're saying that, since I used a katana against the Shadows way back when, I could break my card using one?"

"Sounds that way," Chie replied with a push of her glasses.

"Those are so cool!"

There was a wave of shock as everyone remembered that Nanako and Dojima were still present.

Naoto walked up to Dojima and placed a hand on his shoulder before looking up at him in inspection. "Well, Dojima-san? What do you think of this place?" she asked.

Dojima shook his head. His eyes had not stopped moving from Yukiko to her Persona, then from Akihiko to his own. Then, after Caesar had disappeared, he had merely resorted to staring absentmindedly. "T-This is unbelievable! A whole world, inside the TV! You kids…you were telling the truth!"

"Of course we were!" Chie piped. "After everything that happened, like when the killer confessed his crimes, you still doubted our story?"

"Yeah, man, we even broke into the police station that night and took out your nephew," Kanji added. "We broke the law in so many ways, I don't even wanna think about it."

"And all to save Nanako," Dojima said with an aura of sudden understanding. He looked down at his daughter, who was holding Koromaru and grinning at the scenery.

"Dojima-san?"

Dojima looked up. "Do you guys mind if we went home? I…I have a phone call to make."

Yosuke raised an eyebrow. "A phone call? Is it that important?"

Dojima nodded while looking Yosuke in the face, something he had not done since entering this world. "Yes. I owe someone an apology. And besides, I think he'd like to be here, too."

Rise's eyes lit up. "What? Dojima-san, you don't mean!"

Dojima nodded with a wide smile on his face. He was actually a very ruggedly handsome man, when he was scowling. "Yeah. I'm going to see if my sis will let him go for a few days."

"I say we call it a day, too. We can return tomorrow, and be more prepared," Mitsuru added. "How does a picnic sound?"

Nanako immediately started jumping up and down, still latched onto Koromaru. "A picnic! A picnic! Yaay! We can bring boxed lunches!"

"That's a great idea! I'll make a whole bunch of them for everyone," Chie said with a confident grin.

Yosuke's stomach did a somersault. "Er, Chie, that may not be the best idea."

"Hey, I've been practicing, I'll have you know. Yukiko and I have been studying under the Inn's head chef for weeks! I'll show you," she added with a fist raised in defiant vigor.

"Fine, fine, but only make some for yourself. I'll just take a taste if it's that important to you."

"Yukiko, Naoto-kun, let's make another cake," Rise giggled. Yukiko and Naoto nodded in agreement.

"What about our group, Mitsuru?" Yukari asked. "Mind ordering in some sushi?"

Junpei's ears perked up immediately. "Did I hear someone say 'sushi?' Because I think I heard someone say sushi!"

Karomaru barked and wagged his tail.

Chie stood up tall and an air of invigoration appeared about her. "All right! So we'll go home and prepare for a grand picnic feast!"

Everyone cheered.

Junpei looked around. "Uh…so how do we get out, exactly?"

Teddie grinned and waved his arm. A large, triple-stacked set of televisions appeared in an almost comedic puff of smoke. "Just go through these! Don't worry, they automatically take you back to where you entered. Oh, and when you get back to the Inn, don't go through the televisions. I dunno where they lead, and I won't be here to let anyone back out."

Dojima shook his head, a wild smirk on his face. "I still can't believe this is all happening," he admitted.

"C'mon, Dad, let's go make some lunches for tomorrow!" Nanako set Koromaru on the ground and took her father's hand, leading him over to the television screens.

One by one, everyone left the blissful environment behind in order to properly prepare for the next day's banquet. Being last as always, Teddie looked around and sighed happily at the beautiful scenery before leaping through the televisions. Whether it was his own excitement over the concept of a picnic with such a huge group of people, or just absentmindedness, the stack of televisions remained.

"Scrtch scrtch."

The coast was clear, now. It was safe to come out.

Out from behind rocks, trees, and even from inside the lake, dark masses appeared. They oozed and slithered along, their strange, shadow-like matter pulling themselves along. There were only a large handful of them, and they were highly cautious towards the strange stack of televisions standing in their utopia. They knew who the people who had appeared here had been. They were, after all, Shadows – embodiments of the hearts of man. The connection between the hearts of mankind allowed the Shadows to understand the identities of every last person who had just left. The Shadows weren't crazy enough to confront such famous humans.

…But this new structure, this triple-stacked television set…

_That_ was an open invitation.

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***

End of chapter 2.


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